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New Day

New Video Released of New Jersey Mall Shooting; Obamacare Debated; New Secret Service Scandal; China Relaxes One-Child and Labor Camp Policies

Aired November 15, 2013 - 07:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The government announcing now through state media that both of these, in one case it will be relaxed of the one child policy. Now people who might be the child of a parent who was a one child can have more children. And their reeducation through labor system is being abolished according to the government. These will be welcomed by many people in China, though some activists I've spoken to say they will just find other ways to jail people without trial. Chris and Kate?

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: David, you have to take progress where you find it. This could have huge implications for the society norms there. Thank you for the reporting this morning.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Also new this morning, calm, cool and collected. That's what the shooter who opened fire in a New Jersey mall looks like in stunning new surveillance video. Richard Shoop is seen roaming the mall weapon in hand just moments before taking his own life. CNN's Jason Carroll is here with much more, and a look at that video. Good morning, Jason.

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kate. I know you have seen that video there. It is absolutely chilling. Initially reports were that the shooter fired at security cameras. It turns out that was not the case. Apparently five of the cameras caught the shooter as he moved through the mall firing several rounds.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL: Sheer terror caught on camera. This is newly-released surveillance video obtained by WNBC of the shooting at New Jersey's Garden State Plaza earlier this month. You can see horrified shoppers hiding behind doorways, panicked employees running for their lives, as the shooter, cloaked in all black and wearing a helmet, stocks the aisles carrying a rifle modified to look like an AK-47.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's somebody shooting.

CARROLL: Chilling 911 calls were released just last week.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's somebody is shooting at Garden State Plaza right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Somebody is shooting?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Somebody is shooting at garden state plaza right now. I'm in the bathroom.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, stay on the phone.

CARROLL: Callers cowered in hiding spots throughout the mall. Hundreds remained trapped for hours.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How many people are in the bathroom with you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Three.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are they in your store?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm inside the store, in the office with the door locked by myself, but I'm scared and I want to get out of the mall. I'm scared and I want to leave out.

CARROLL: The shooter seen canvassing the entire center lurking near escalators, coming off elevators. Some 911 callers petrified the gunman is nearby whisper, "please," to the dispatcher.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't hear any fire. Please hurry.

CARROLL: Thankfully no victims were injured in the chaos. The shooter, 20-year-old Richard Shoop, was later found dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Police believe Shoop never intended to harm anyone but himself.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL: And Kate, the Bergen County prosecutor says Shoop's intent was likely something that is commonly referred to as suicide by cop. Shoop's brother calling it an act of self-indulgence and a tragedy for their family.

CUOMO: Thank you very much.

At first it was just that five percent could be potentially compromised by Obamacare not getting to keep their policies. But now it seems that issue and the rollout in general has put the presidency in real jeopardy. Questions about the president's credibility, his legacy, his ability to govern, the headlines are filled with thing. "The New York Post," sure they've got their own take. But look at this, that it is a "disaster" is the word they're using. Could this be the end of President Obama's ability to get things done for the rest of us?

Let's discuss. Joining us, columnist at "The Blaze" Will Cain, host of "Huff Post Live" Marc Lamont Hill, both CNN political commentators. Let's start with you, Will. Obviously your team carrying the ball on this. This started as five percent may be compromised. Now it seems like a referendum on the president himself. What's your take?

WILL CAIN, COLUMNIST, "THE BLAZE": I think this particularly press conference yesterday, this whole issue gives you a taste of what conservatives have been saying about President Obama and symbolize their problems with him.

First of all, there's a question about the legality of just simply mandating, here's the fix to what we have heard for years was the law of the land. The president seems to deem the law whatever he wakes up that morning and decides it to be. That gives you optics we feel like we have seen for quite some time. It's this optics of, the king has spoken. I had a list of things that were not appropriate that would be banned. I'm going to temporarily expand that list for the people they can have these products.

But this is the most important thing, I think, because it's tangible effect on people. This is impossible. This is magical thinking. You cannot tell the insurance policy companies in 32 days, I want you to reinstate policies that for years you have been planning to cancel. You have to set rates. You have to set coverage. You have to get approved by regulators. This has been fantasy thinking that he simply is shifting burden on the insurers.

MARC LAMONT HILL, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I disagree. I think part of this is entirely possible. To say it's impossible is nothing to do with the insurance companies. They would like to reinstate the financial policies. It's in their financial interest to reinstate the policies. The question is at the state level when state regulators don't want to do it. I think some states will be fine doing it, places like Arkansas, Washington, New York, California. You'll have a tough time getting it done there --

CAIN: We have already seen Washington and California say no.

BALDWIN: Marc, we've been saying all morning, the president was under intense pressure to do something, and it's what the something is going to mean going forward that I think we need to analyze.

But also the question is, is this even bigger than Obamacare at this point? The headline in "USA Today," "Health law shakes presidency." When you look at the headlines, they are not even the harshest part. You go to "The New York Times," it's making parallels to, this is a parallel to the Bush administration's Katrina response. I mean, this is a problem for the president.

HILL: It is certainly a problem. I don't think it rises to the level of Katrina for a range of reasons ethically and politically, but I do think this is the biggest challenge the president has ever faced. And I think he's going to have to deal with this. His credibility is on the line here. And I think yesterday's maneuvers in some ways helped him. He was transparent. He was contrite. He acknowledged he didn't just jeopardize the insurance policyholders, but also even other Democrats in the house and Senate. He was every clear about that. The problem is he's setting forth with a plan that can't fully be enacted.

CAIN: That's right. To the point is this, I agree he was contrite but not transparent. Here's why --

HILL: How is that?

CAIN: Because it was a fake fix. It was not real.

BALDWIN: Here's the big question that will be, what is the fix? What are Republicans offering? Because what Republicans are offering they are voting on today, Democrats argue that is gutting the law because we all know what Republicans want in the end. So what's the fix?

CAIN: The said thing is, Kate, there is no fix to restricting one- fifth of the economy. The transparent part that President Obama offered yesterday, it's very complex and difficult to restructure the insurance market. That's true. But the Republicans' plan isn't good either, and it's not that different than what President Obama said.

CUOMO: That matters, don't jump over that, Will, because that matters to people. The game played between left and right, we all understand it. You can't jump off that point and beat Obamacare like a Pinata with no plan b. You have uninsured who need it, elderly who need it, you have families who need the coverage.

CAIN: That's like building a house out of matchsticks. We spent three years building a house out of matchsticks, now you want to ignite the people who said that was a bad idea.

CUOMO: You don't have a better idea.

CAIN: Because this house can't be fixed.

CUOMO: But you have problems you have to fix.

CAIN: Our ideas have been consistent for years. We want health savings account and catastrophic insurance. That is something that has to start back at square one. Obamacare can't be fixed. In fact President Obama's fix, Marc, it slits the throat of it.

HILL: The Republican solution is what slits the throat of it, at least the legislative solution, because it allows young people who don't need to opt-in to opt in forever. That would gut the policy.

CAIN: That's what President Obama said.

HILL: He offered the administration fix for a year. There's a difference between saying it's a fix for a year, which is not the best idea.

CUOMO: It's his fault for jumping into this. He said the five percent meant everything. Even though they are good reasons, talk to market economists, not political commentators, who say I knew this was going to come. Some people are going to have to pay more, but over time it evens out. Tell me whether or not this works.

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: Can I ask about the political sense then? Denis McDonough said yesterday when I asked what this is all about, he said it's not about politics. Really? It's all about politics. Now that we know that, let me ask you this, we're delaying this for one year. When are we going to be talking about this again? When all of this is going to happen again? October of 2014.

CAIN: Right. Kate, the point was to get past the next election.

BALDWIN: That doesn't get you past to the next election.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: I'm helping you.

HILL: It's a strategic misstep to say this will go October 2014.

CAIN: It won't. He'll extend it to 2015 if he has to. I want to address what you said about the market, that may help stock traders but it doesn't help insurance companies. They are saying right now they are not prepared to do this in 32 days' time.

HILL: The poor people have said they are not recreated to do that.

CUOMO: You have created a straw horse, because you're saying this five percent law doesn't work. And it simply doesn't. People who analyze the law say they knew this was coming. They knew the numbers were low.

CAIN: We don't disagree. This five percent shows exactly how the wall was intended to work.

(CROSSTALK)

HILL: But that's a different argument as saying the Obamacare law does not work as such, that it's a fundamentally dysfunctional law.

CUOMO: I hope you guys both understand this, that regular people are sitting back watching what you're doing and they get it. You're not talking about the debt ceiling, you're not talking about the budget, you're not talking about immigration, because this is easy. Just because it's easy doesn't mean people are impressed by it.

CAIN: One-fifth of the economy is attempting to be restructured and it was intended to push people off their plans. They didn't like it, and now here we are.

CUOMO: You cannot measure the law by what's happening with one slice of the people potentially. You know that's true.

(CROSSTALK)

HILL: But there are problems beyond that, but they are not bigger than that. The website is beyond that but not bigger than that. It can be fixed.

CAIN: One year from now we'll be doing the same thing because the employer mandate comes in and people will be upset. So you think this is the end? This is the beginning of the end of Obamacare.

BALDWIN: We said at 6:00 everyone should take a deep breath. I said, maybe we should at least try to avoid hyper ventilating. (CROSSTALK)

HILL: I saw Will this morning. He was giggling and looking at notes and stuff. He was excited.

CAIN: In the makeup chair, Marc has makeup on, what kind of prep do you do this morning? Read the sports pages?

HILL: He has nothing to prep for.

BALDWIN: This is fun political fodder, but again, this is a big thing. I don't think we have found the fix today at this table. We need to keep going.

HILL: We just have to trust President Obama it will all work out. I tried to keep a straight face through it.

BALDWIN: You tried really well.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

We have something that hopefully is a little less controversial. Let's go to the weather this weekend. What are we looking at, Indra?

INDRA PETERSONS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Definitely warmer, but also a little bit of rain in there. Not much at least for the first half of the weekend, but the second half of the weekend we'll see changes. This morning it feels better in the early morning hours. Current conditions instead of being in 20s and 30s, today we are upping the game, we're talking about 30s and 40s this morning. We'll take that 10-degree warm up in the morning.

Of course we have been talking about this position of the high. That guy is offshore now so we're pulling the moisture from the south, which means over the gulf where it is warmer. And that's the reason we are warming up as we go through the weekend.

The other way to look at it, water vapor moisture, we are not only pulling in warm air from the south, but also some moisture off of the Atlantic ocean. So with that you can actually see a little bit of a spin here and can follow that. And that's going to be bringing light showers in through Saturday. But behind it there's another storm that's going to be a bigger story as we go through Sunday and Monday.

First thing to note, look at temperatures from Boston to the south. In Atlanta we're talking about above normal temperatures, even getting into the 60s as we go through the weekend. So that's the good news. Yes, there's snow in the Pacific Northwest today. It matters because the system makes its way across the country bringing snow to Montana, Idaho, today, eventually again by Saturday we'll be talking about the Midwest seeing light showers. But by Sunday, this is the big story here, the chance for severe weather again really into the Ohio valley all the way kind through Mississippi and Louisiana, the reason for that warm and cool air together with the jet dream there. So that's the big story really Sunday. And that will spread into the northeast on Monday. So, right, when we go back to work on Monday, it will feel like a Monday. We'll talk about rain, strong winds and, of course, cooler temps.

BALDWIN: A good day to be working.

PETERSONS: Yes. I'll take the good weather on the weekend any day.

CUOMO: Every day is a new day. Coming up when we come back after the break, turns out the Secret Service can't keep its own secrets. Even more details leaking out about the scandals there. We will tell you.

BALDWIN: Also ahead, a passenger apparently decides to open the plane's -- the door of the plan that he is on and falls into the water off the coast of Florida. Is there more to the story? We're going to find out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLDUAN: Welcome back to NEW DAY. The Secret Service has been rattled by a new scandal a year after agents brought prostitutes to their Colombia hotel rooms that we talked so much about. Now two agents are accused of misconduct after a senior supervisor allegedly tried to retrieve a bullet he left in a woman's hotel room in Washington, D.C.

An investigation then revealed another supervising agent sent sexually suggestive e-mails to a female employee. Let's talk more about this and what this means. Let's bring in Ronald Kessler, a former "Washington Post" reporter who broke the scandal in Colombia. He's also the author of "In the President's Secret Service." Ronald, it's great to see you. Thank you for coming in.

RONALD KESSLER, AUTHOR, "IN THE PRESIDENT'S SECRET SERVICE": Good to be with you, Kate.

BOLDUAN: So, let's talk about this latest story coming out that's happening in Washington. What do you think happened here in the hotel room, and then the e-mails, what's going on?

KESSLER: Well, it shows very poor judgment, misconduct, and it raises a question, if they have such poor judgment, would they, for example, be susceptible to an effort by a foreign intelligent service or terrorist to jeopardize the safety of the president or plant bugging devices in the White House. It is shocking that agents on the president's protective detail would have such poor judgment.

It's not widespread misconduct, but it is, I think, symptomatic of a lax management attitude, which condones corner-cutting, and this even much more serious. For example, agents will, under pressure from the White House staff or political campaign staffs, let people into events without magnetometer screening or metal detection screening. It's just like letting passengers into the airplane without metal detection screening. And that is condoned by management.

So this lax attitude filters down to agents, and I think agents figure, hey, if management flouts the rules and jeopardizes the safety of the president, why shouldn't we do whatever we want to do?

BOLDUAN: People are going to wonder, though, in this most recent situation, is this exactly, though, how the management -- the management structure is supposed to work? They see a problem, they fix it and hold people accountable. That's the thing that was kind of lingering surrounding the Cartagena scandal, is that this happened so long ago, and no one really was punished for quite some time. So what do you think, is this situation, should it be seen kind of from a different view? This is how they should be reacting if there's misconduct, hold people accountable right away?

KESSLER: That's right. There's no question that they did not handle this properly. They eventually handled the Cartagena scandal properly. Although it never would have come out if I had not broken the story. It was going to be kept secret.

But one anecdote tells you a lot, and that's when Mary Cheney, one of Dick Cheney's daughters, was under protection, she would try to get her agents to take friends to restaurants. Well, they're not taxi drivers, they're law enforcement officers. They're paid to protect certain people. They refused as they should have, but she got a fit and got her detail leader removed over this.

So what does that tell agents? It tells them, you know, management will not back them. Management is perfectly happy to flout the rules. And I think that's why you saw the Secret Service uniformed officers at the White House gates letting in the Salahis, the party crashers, to the state dinner. They hey, they're not on the guest list, but gee what if it turns out they were supposed to be on the guest list? Our own management will not back us if there is a problem, we'll just let them in. That's the real culture that is the real problem in the Secret Service today.

BOLDUAN: Following the scandal in Colombia, they were talking about changing the culture. People lost their jobs, there's a new head of the Secret Service, the first woman to head up the Secret Service, and new rules of conduct were put in place. What's your sense now? Have those changes been implemented or not?

KESSLER: The changes have been implemented and that has improved the situation and made it much more clear that this kind of conduct won't be tolerated, but, at the same time, President Obama appointed Julia Pearson as the new Secret Service director. She essentially was a clone of Mark Sullivan, the previous director, who presided over these scandals over the Salahi intrusion, over the Cartagena scandal. She was his chief of staff. And so, she has done nothing whatsoever to change this culture on the management level of corner cutting.

Many things she did was issued a memo reminding agents they should maintain a professional appearance. Well, it reminds me of J. Edgar Hoover who was very conscious of whether agents wore white shirts or not, insisted on everyone looking wonderful, but at the same time presided over a range of abuses. And the only way to really change the culture is to bring in a new director from the outside, such as Von Muller was, when brought into the FBI, who can really make changes that are necessary. BOLDUAN: Ronald Kessler, author of "In the President's Secret Service," thank you so much.

KESSLER: Thanks, Kate.

BOLDUAN: Of course. Chris, over to you.

CUOMO: Kate, coming up on NEW DAY, help may be getting closer for Mayor Rob Ford. The city council is about to make him an offer he can't refuse. We'll tell you about it.

Plus, mystery in mid-flight. How does a passenger just fall out of a plane?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PEREIRA: Welcome back to NEW DAY this Friday, 15th of November. Let's give you a look at your headlines starting with breaking news. Two historic policies changes being announced by the Chinese government; the nation's one-child policy is being relaxed. Couples can now have two children if one of the parents is an only child. China also announcing it will abolishing its reeducation through labor program. Under that program, thousands of dissidents have been sent to labor camps without trial. China says this is all part of an effort to improve human rights.

The House expected to vote today on GOP's version of an Obamacare fix. The White House threatening to veto the bill if it lands on the president's desk. On Thursday, a contrite but resolute president said he let people keep their bare bones policies for a year. In the meantime, a blistering "New York Times" editorial is now raising questions about the president's credibility.

The Philippine government defending its efforts to help people in the wake of the Typhoon Haiyan. It's been a week since the monster storm devastated the country. There are many survivors who have received little or no assistance. And now there's a new threat, doctors fear diseases like cholera and hepatitis will spread quickly because of a lack of sanitation and clean drinking water.

The murder trial of Crystal Mangum is underway in North Carolina. She's the woman who falsely claimed that she was raped by members of the Duke lacrosse team back in 2006. Mangum is accused of stabbing her boyfriend to death two and a half years ago. In opening statements Thursday, her attorney told jurors his client did stab Reginald Daye after he broke down her bathroom door and dragged her out by her hair.

An Alabama police officer has his job back after being forced out for racing his motorcycle on duty. You might remember we showed you the video yesterday of officer Carlos Rogers caught on camera racing a local biker. He resigned under pressure, but the biker who raced him, well, he started a petition to have him reinstated. Thursday, Montgomery's police chief said he rethought his position and asked Rogers back to work.

I like the way that story turned out. That it was the guy that he was racing that said, this isn't right? I'm going to fight for my friend.

My motorcycle friend.

CUOMO: It was an overreaction and good leadership to go back on your own decision like that. Happy to hear that man has his job.

PEREIRA: Humanity.

CUOMO: Yes, humanity is back!

(CROSSTALK)

BOLDUAN: One for humanity!

CUOMO: We just have to make them flight attendants now and we'll get it all figured out.

Next story, Toronto mayor Rob Ford may be in denial, but the politicians about him seem ready to help him regardless. The admitted crack smoker and heavy drinker is fighting desperately to keep his job in the face of stunning new evidence that many see as clear signs of addiction and gross misconduct, at a minimum. The city council is now trying its best to strip Ford of power in an attempt to make him want to leave. It turns out, he may even have a job offer waiting for him if he does. Nic Robertson explains live from Toronto. Good morning, Nic.

Nic ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Chris. A reality TV show, "Ford Nation," including his brother Doug, but you have to ask yourself at this stage, does the man actually need a reality show? As it is right now, he already seems to have cameras following him wherever he goes already.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTSON: The crush of news cameras following troubled Toronto Mayor Rob Ford as he battles to keep his job. Late Thursday, another call for him to step aside. According to a city council source, this time it's from his brother, one of his staunchest defenders now urging him to take a leave of absence after allegations of heavy drinking, drugs, and escorts.

ROB FORD, MAYOR OF TORONTO: That is outright lies, that's not true. It hurts my wife when they're calling a friend of mine a prostitute. Helene (ph) is not a prostitute. She's a friend, and it makes me sick how people are saying this.

ROBERTSON: Digging the hole deeper, Ford made this vulgar remark about allegations he wanted to have oral sex with a former staffer.

FORD: Olivia Ganda (ph) says that I (EXPLETIVE DELTED). I've never said that in my life to her. I would never to that. I'm happily married.

ROBERTSON: Not long after, another Mayor Ford apology. FORD: The revelations yesterday of cocaine, escorts, and prostitution has pushed me over the line, and I used unforgivable language. And again, I apologize.